irregularity of shipments, and vessels experienced long de- Food ' or 

 lays, owing to the scarcity of labor to move the goods. 



The tremendous demand for Agricultural Purposes, l8 3 

 however, has really caused the rise in price. The Consump- 

 tion all over the World for Agricultural purposes has ex- 

 panded at a very great rate lately, and perhaps more par- 

 ticularly in this country in the Cotton Belt than anywhere 

 else. This great demand has grown very rapidly, hence the 

 effect on prices. Production is likely to expand so as to fully 

 meet the fresh demand as rapidly as the supply of labor can 

 be provided for on the West Coast of Chili. The earthquake 

 was followed by a wave of rebuilding activity which made 

 labor very scarce and high. 



Looking at the prices current, taking the prices for all 

 Nitrogenous fertilizers, it will be noted that they have like- 

 wise risen. Many observers of the (Nitrogen) Ammoniate 

 Market in recent years have asserted that there are not enough 

 Ammoniates annually produced to meet the Consumptive re- 

 quirements, and the tendency on the part of Fertilizer Manu- 

 facturers is to make lower grade goods ; a policy which seems 

 to have invariably a disastrous effect on those who follow it. 



It is proper to observe also that all the Nitrogen in 

 Nitrate of Soda is available. In the other Ammoniates gen- 

 erally quoted the Nitrogen is, of course, not completely avail- 

 able from an Agricultural Standpoint even though some may 

 be soluble in water. Nitrate does not leave an acid residue 

 in the soil, but, on the contrary, it leaves a sweet alkali 

 residue, of great benefit to most soils. 



A further point of interest is the very satisfactory in- 

 crease in the prices of agricultural commodities whereby 

 farmers are getting a very handsome return on their produce. 

 It would seem, therefore, that on the whole Nitrate of Soda 

 is still the cheapest Ammoniate on the market, and it is to be 

 expected that its intelligent use will yield more profit than 

 ever. 



Nitrate always pays handsomely on hay, and one hun- 

 dred pounds per acre alone is a very effective application. 

 Even at the present prices for Nitrate, one hundred pounds 

 without the use of any other fertilizer, will produce an in- 

 creased yield of more than half a ton of barn-cured hay. The 

 use of Nitrate on this crop promises to be very remunerative. 



